This invention relates generally to orthotic supports for use on parts of the body that have been injured and also in preventing injuries before they occur. More particularly, the orthotic supports of this invention are adapted for preventing and relieving injuries to the muscles and tendons of the foot.
Persons engaged in physical activities, particularly athletic activities such as tennis, squash, racketball and the like, often incur muscular injuries to the foot and, in particular, the ankle region. Ankle injuries can occur also from such mundane activities as walking, riding bicycles, exiting from motor vehicles and the like. The primary symptom of these injuries is a chronic inflammation of the attachment of muscle-tendon groups to the associated bones. It is considered that injuries to the foot occur because the normal arrangement of the muscles and their attachments to the associated bone structure predisposes individuals to injury during the movements associated with strenuous physical exercise, such as engaging in tennis, baseball, football, basketball and the like. These exertions create great pressure against the attachment of the muscles mass, subjecting it to repetitive and chronic strain with a subsequent formation of non-elastic scar tissue. The scar tissue often tears again, and tends to become reinflamed The situation is compounded by the lack of appropriate muscle-tendon strength and endurance to withstand the forces which are placed against it. For the most part, the problem occurs because of an inherent weakness in the structure, design or mechanical relationship of the muscles, tendons or ligaments in the foot which subject the ankle area, in particular, to increased forces in a specific area, thus, placing an inordinate strain on the tissues.
A number of bandage-like devices, generally elastic in nature, have been developed which can be placed about the foot. Such devices have suffered from several disadvantages. For example, some elastic devices have tended to restrict circulation in limbs, and elastic characteristics of such bandages have failed to provide sufficient counter-force pressure to effectively disseminate the concentration of forces. Other devices designed to exert pressure about the ankle area have a disadvantage of limiting mobility of the bodily member and the joints associated therewith. Still, other devices do not stay in place on an extremity and are too narrow to properly disseminate forces placed on the muscles. Some, as the ankle support described in Peckham U.S. Pat. No. 3,312,219, comprise an elaborate plurality of flexible straps or tapes which are secured in a precise predetermined angular pattern which is intended to ensure that each strap is automatically directed into proper position for supporting the limb in the best possible way. Others, such as using adhesive tape and elastic band members such as the well-known "Ace" bandage, require considerable expertise to ensure that the ankle is properly wrapped for correct support while, at the same time, not limiting circulation flow to and from the member.